BANKING
The investment banking industry is facing diffi cult times ahead, but there
are still opportunities for those prepared to take on more diverse roles,
writes Lynn Strongin Dodds
BY: LYNN STRONGIN DODDS
here is no doubt that the As Kirstin Duff y, operational director for people who have experience in the
T
recent headlines make for of Morgan McKinley, a UK based Middle East.”
sober reading. Few would recruitment consultancy points out, “Th e It is no surprise that the larger
have predicted that within a current volatility across the global investment banks have come undone.
matter of weeks the fi nancial services markets has slowed Th ey took the brunt of the subprime
landscape of banking would have been overall hiring levels within London’s crisis as business as well as liquidity ebbed
radically altered with venerable players investment banking sector. However, away. Th eir main drivers of growth such
such as Lehman disappearing and Merrill there is still demand for good candidates as large ticket merger and acquisition
Lynch being subsumed into Bank of with solid skills sets, particularly amongst deals as well as initial public off erings
America. Opportunities are still present, the smaller investment banks. Th e stalled after dropping a hefty 41% in the
but they are farther and fewer between importance of regulation and risk fi rst half of 2008. In the meantime, the
during this tumultuous period. management means hiring in areas such securitisation business which helped fuel
If history is any guide, though, markets as compliance and risk remain steady.” the boom has virtually withered.
will rebound in time. While the Kate Howe, co-founder of KHG
investment banking model has been Partners, a London based boutique which JOB LOSSES
altered to the point of extinction, the caters to both ends of the banking Data from Bloomberg reveals that global
banking industry has proven itself spectrum agrees. “Th ere is still a lot of banks have shed more than 100,000
innovative and resilient. New products and recruitment going on in the City but it is jobs, or 2.4% of the global workforce,
services will emerge, and companies will at the smaller boutiques. Th is since January 2007. Th e list includes all
return to capital raising. For now, environment has given these fi rms access the household names such as Citi,
candidates are advised to be fl exible and to people who perhaps would not have Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley.
cast their nets at the smaller end of the been interested in them before. As for the Th is fi gure will escalate in the wake of
spectrum. While impacted by global larger banks, we are still working on the Lehman collapse, the nationalisation
events, the smaller fi rms have not suff ered mandates but it is maybe one or two and and mergers that have taken place in the
in the same way as their larger brethren. In in much more specialised areas compared past two months.
fact, many who did not have the fi nancial to 25 before the credit crunch.” Every bank is either pruning their
muscle to play in the premier league are Andrew Breach, manager, debt & operations or imposing a hiring freeze.
now winning high-profi le mandates from structured fi nance at Michael Page For example, UBS recently announced
some of the world’s biggest companies and Financial Services, adds, “In terms of further cuts of 2,000 on top of the 2,387
taking key advisory roles. For example, general job fl ow, we are 35% down from layoff s that took place in the second
Perella Weinberg Partners advised France last year but there are still plenty of quarter. About 1,700 of them were in
Telecom on a possible takeover bid for opportunities and in more diverse areas. investment banking. Th e proposed
Nordic telephone group TeliaSonera and In the past we would have had numerous Dresdner and Commerzbank alliance
Evercore Partners was involved in Time jobs from one big bank but now we are also does not augur well as there are
Warner’s spin-off of its cable arm as well as seeing more specialised requests. For forecasts of around 9,000 job cuts, with
the sale of Electronic Data Systems to example, in origination and structured roughly 1,200 being from Dresdner’s
Hewlett-Packard. trade fi nance, there is a growing demand investment banking division in London.
58 SUMMER 2008
558-78 investment banking.indd 588-78 investment banking.indd 58 222/11/08 12:23:012/11/08 12:23:01
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